The 73rd Hunger Games
by nightowl1312
Summary: Eighteen year old Genevieve Odair never thought that she would be picked for the Hunger Games. None of her six older siblings were anyways. But when Justice Prince pulls Genevieve's name from the glass ball, Genevieve's world changes forever. Join Genevieve as she literally fights for life in Panem's 73rd Annual Hunger Games.
1. The Reaping

**Disclaimer: The Hunger Games all belongs to Suzanne Collins, not me. Sorry.**

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I woke up on the morning of the 73rd Hunger Games happy and with an odd feeling of freedom. I was eighteen years old, so this would be my last year of worrying of being reaped. I braided my long, wavy dirty blonde hair down my back loosely and put on a short silk forest green dress that matched my eyes. "Genevieve!" My mother called. "It's time to go!" I smiled. "I'm coming Mother!" I called down to her. I skipped down the stairs, something I had learned to do over the years. My mother's face was bright and her eyes were shining. My father had a happy yet worried expression on his face. "Oh come on Dad," I said, punching him lightly in the arm. "You know I won't be reaped." We all hoped I wasn't at least. I was the youngest of seven kids, making my family the largest one in District Four. None of my older siblings had been reaped and I hadn't either yet. My Dad rubbed my shoulders as we were walking. "I sure hope not Gen."

Soon I split off from my parents to go sign in. I quickly found my best friend, Hope, her curly red hair and pale freckled skin making her easy to spot among all the other tan blondes and brunettes. "Gen!" she exclaimed, hugging me. "You look gorgeous!" I smiled. "You do to Hope." She truly did in her cream ankle length dress. Hope laughed as we moved up in line. "You always look better than me! No wonder so many boys chase you!" I laughed. It was true, boys did stare at me. I normally gave them the death glare back, something my cousin Finnick had taught me. Oh Finnick Odair you silly man. Yes, the victor of the 65th Hunger Games was my cousin. Shocking huh? "Are you excited for later?" Hope whispered excitedly. I nodded and clapped my hands together quickly. "Of course I am! I can see you are too!" We always had a party with our close friends and family after the reapings, celebrating the fact that we weren't reaped. We moved up again in line and I gave the Peacekeeper my pointer finger. "Genevieve Odair," I said. The Peacekeeper nodded and stuck the needle into my finger, drawing my blood. Then she placed my finger down on the paper in the square marked "Genevieve Odair".

I moved into the area that was roped off for the eighteen year old girls. Hope pushed her way past a tall girl with dark brown hair to squeeze in next to me. "Welcome to the reaping of the 73rd Hunger Games!" Our Capitol representative, Justice Prince exclaimed. Nobody applauded and Justice stared out at us with disappointed eyes. "To remind you of the noble cause why hold these Games, I'd like to show a short clip. Roll film please!" As the video started, Justice stood there, clearly as bored as we were. "She dyed her hair teal this year," I whispered to Hope. She nodded. "It's much better than the neon yellow like last year. And look! She's got a tattoo on her arm!" I looked at Justices arm and saw a black and pink dragon on her arm. I giggled. "It so fits her!" I exclaimed sarcastically. Hope giggled too. The video ended. "Now it's time to proceed with the reaping!" Justice announced. She motioned for applause, but the amazing residents of District Four didn't give her one. Justice walked over to the girl's glass ball and I caught sight of her short and sparkly teal dress that showed off her stubby pale legs. She was wearing at least seven inch white heels, which by the looks of it, were studded completely with crystals. "Put some clothes on woman!" Hope coughed and some girls around us giggled uncomfortably.

"Now, we'll do ladies first like always!" Justice said. "Switch it up!" I heard a boy yell confidently. "Oh if you insist," Justice said. She walked over to the boy's glass ball, her heels clicking on the concrete stage. Justice reached her hand into the bowel and pulled a name slip from the very bottom. "The very lucky boy Tribute from District 4 is Mitchell Sanders!" Hope and I looked over to see a tall black haired boy with blue eyes shove his way up to the front, escorted by Peacekeepers. Mitchell was eighteen like Hope and I. "I'm sure he didn't want to go into the Games," I muttered. "Last I heard he was excited about settling down." Hope stifled more laughter. "Who would want to settle down with him?" Mitchell was a slight control freak, but was good-looking and strong. He was like a younger Finnick. I was almost positive that the women in the Capitol were drooling over him right this moment. "Congratulations Mitchell!" Justice exclaimed, shaking Mitchell's hand. Mitchell didn't look too happy. I knew nobody was going to volunteer for him though. We all knew he could handle himself. "That's my boy!" I heard Mr. Sanders yell from the back. "He's drunk again," I muttered to Hope. "When isn't he?" she whispered back.

"Now we'll find out who the lucky lady is!" Justice exclaimed. She had already clopped her way over to the girl's ball. She reached her pudgy hand into the bowel and pulled out a slip of paper. "The Girl Tribute from District Four is Genevieve Odair!" Justice exclaimed. My heart stopped and I froze. Everyone turned to look at me. "I'll volunteer for you," Hope whispered. I shook my head. "No. Take care of my family for me," I whispered. I pushed my way past the other girls, who were wishing me luck as I passed. I walked up the stage and shook Justice's hand. "Aren't you a pretty young woman and Finnick's relative no less?" Justice said. "My, you'll be a big hit in the Capitol!" I saw Mitchell roll his eyes and I raised my eyebrows. Justice grabbed both of our hands and put them together. Mitchell grasped my small hand in his big one and gave it a squeeze. "You'll make it out," he whispered. "I wish," I whispered back.

"It is my pleasure to give you Genevieve Odair and Mitchell Sanders; District Four's Tributes for the 73rd Hunger Games!"


	2. Goodbyes and Train Rides

**Disclaimer: If I owned anything Hunger Games related, I'd be a millionaire. But I'm not a millionaire. You know what that means.**

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Mitchell and I were escorted by Peacekeepers into the town center; a large official looking building made of white marble. It looked like a Grecian temple. Yes, we so went here to worship President Snow. We were separated at the end of one tiled hallway and I was pushed into a white carpeted room with tan walls. There was a dark oak coffee table that had two matching dark oak chairs that were cushioned with a white fabric surrounding it. The only source of light was two tall windows of the back wall that were shielded with white curtains with a bright exotic flower pattern. I think they were hibiscus. I basically stood in shock as I sat myself down into one of the chairs. Why was I picked? More likely, why was I picked? I had only had my name in the required seven times! One girl I knew had her name entered thirty-six whole times! Why oh why was I the one picked?

"You have two minutes," I heard a Peacekeeper say. I glanced upwards to see my parents, my six older siblings and Finnick. "Oh Genevieve!" my mother cried. By the looks of it, her, my dad, and my two sisters had been crying. My four brothers were still holding on. "I'm so sorry!" Jennifer, my oldest sister said, wrapping me in a warm hug. Everyone hugged my tightly. "I don't even have anything to give you as a token!" My youngest sister Jasmine said. She was only a year older than me, but she was the most serious of the seven of us. She was the one who made us weigh out and think through our options before we made our final decision. I took after our oldest sibling Rhett, who was a troublemaker, but had his serious moments. My whole family tried to comfort me. Well, everyone except Finnick. "Are you insensitive or what?" I said to Finnick, forcing laughter. Finn shrugged. "I don't see why everybody's telling you goodbye," he said. He turned to my family. "You have a strong daughter and sister," he said. "She'll make it out of this alive."

"Time's up!" the Peacekeeper said, pulling our family out. I managed to snag one last hug from my mom before everyone was pulled out of the room, still crying and upset. Except for Finn I mean. Everyone was scared for me except him. Finnick had given me hope. I wiped my eyes with my arm. I was going to be strong. Speaking of hope, Hope was suddenly pushed into the room with the same old, "You have two minutes." She ran over to me and hugged me. She was crying, and Hope never cried. When she did, she never cried this hard. I hugged her back, hard. "I won't be able to live with myself if you die," she cried. "So take this. You'll have part of me in the arena at least." She unhooked her necklace and placed it in the palm of my tan hand. I gasped. "You can't!" I exclaimed. "You can't give me this!" In my hand was Hope's favorite necklace. It was a silver seagull in flight with small thin details. Its' eye was a diamond, a real diamond, and its' beak was also a diamond. It was on a silver chain and it rested just below the collar bone. Hope nodded vigorously. "I can do whatever I want with it. It's yours now. Here, let me put it on." I handed her back the necklace and turned around, lifting my side braid off my shoulder. She put the necklace around my neck and hooked it in the back. I turned around and hugged her again. "See you at the end of the Games," I said. Hope gave a small smile. The Peacekeeper came back into the room. "Time's up," he announced, his voice monotone like. As Hope was walking out of the room, she turned around quickly and said, "See you then!" I waved.

Soon I too was escorted out of the room with Peacekeepers like everyone before me. Mitchell and I walked side by side. He kept fiddling with a white knotted rope bracelet around his left wrist. I knew it was his token. He came from a family of net makers. One of his sisters must have made it for him. "Nice necklace Gen," he whispered. "Thanks," I responded. We walked up the platform and through the automatic door that led into the train. "Welcome!" Justice Prince said. Mitchell and I exchanged a look that said, _"Oh good gravy."_ "Well?" Justice said expectantly. "What do you think?" She waved her arms around, gesturing for us to look around. I glanced around the train. It looked like the inside of the town center, regal and cold. There was a sitting area with white velvet couches and another dark oak coffee table. The dining table was also the dark oak and the chairs looked to be the exact same ones as the room I was just in, but with arms. Everything else was basically like the victor's houses. Finnick had given my family the grand tour of the place after he had won. It was nice, but like I said earlier, it was not inviting. "It's nice," I said politely. Mitchell nodded in agreement. "Not a very outspoken one are you?" Justice said with a giggle to Mitchell. "I'm very outspoken," Mitchell said. "I just have enough manners to not say everything I'm thinking." Justice nodded.

"Here are your mentors! I'm assuming you know them very well; especially you Miss Odair!" Justice said excitedly. I nodded grimly. "I'll just leave the five of you alone now!" Justice scuttled out of the room and into another section of the train. "We're not talking about strategy," Finnick said gruffly. "You two can figure that out on your own." Mitchell looked at me, but I didn't look back. Annie looked at me sympathetically. Mags just had a silly grin on her face. "We've got a good chance of bringing home another victor this year!" she exclaimed. "These are most excellent choices on Miss Prince's part!" I opened my mouth to say that Justice didn't have a choice, but Finnick shook his head. "Thank you," I said instead. "No," Mags said. "Thank YOU. You will bring honor to District Four, I can feel it. One of you two will emerge victorious!" She sounded so sure of herself that I almost laughed. I could feel Mitchell restraining laughter as well. "Let's sit down and talk," Annie suggested. She seemed so put together. Finnick had told me she was mad. Maybe she was acting this way for the sake of Mitchell and I. Mitchell and I sat side-by-side on the white couch across from the three mentors that had chosen to come this year. They were the only three that ever came. The others wanted nothing more to do with the Games.

For the next couple of hours and during dinner, we all just talked. By the end of the night, I was feeling happier and I could tell Mitchell was too. After an amazing dinner, I walked out to the back part of the train. I stared up at the sky and down the railroad tracks. If I just jumped off, I could run back home, back to District Four. Suddenly, I heard the door open and I felt a tall muscular person join me outside. "Needed some air?" I heard Mitchell ask. "Yeah," I said quietly. "You know," he said. "You're not all that strange." I glared at him. "You thought I was strange? I guess that sort of does make sense. I'm not all that popular like you." We stood in silence a couple more moments before I said, "I guess you're not as much of a stuck up brat as I thought either. Actually, you're pretty nice." I felt him look at me. "Well," he said quietly, "that's behind us now." He stuck out his right hand. "Friends?" he asked. I turned and smiled up at him. "Friends," I agreed. I shook his hand, but Mitchell suddenly pulled me into a hug. I hugged him back, but quickly pulled away. "What was that for?" I said quietly. He shrugged. "I needed to know that somebody cared," he replied. "I care Mitchell," I said. "I care even though we're not the best of friends. I care even though you've been a jerk to me a couple of times. Being too caring is my weakness. I want to help people who are hurting because I care. If I get killed in these games, it'll be because I cared about somebody, not because I wasn't a good enough at fighting or I was out-smarted. It'll be because I cared too much about the person who wanted to kill me."

The rest of the time we stood in silence and eventually I headed back inside with Mitchell on my tail. "Yes sir!" I heard Mags exclaim. "The last time I felt so good about a tribute, it was Annie! The time before that it was Finnick!" I smiled as I stood in the doorway that would lead to my cabin. I kept listening. "I'm not so sure about Mitchell, but I think Genevieve could win this. I mean, she's smarter than Mitchell by lots plus she's a good fighter from what Finnick's told me," Annie reasoned. Finnick groaned. "She beat me in almost everything. The almost being using a trident, but I've had more years of experience. I KNOW she could win and she probably will win. I think Mitchell could too, but if it came down to him and Gen, Genevieve would kill herself so he could win or Mitchell would hold her back while he killed himself for her. Gen would probably kill herself before he could even protest though." "One will bring honor to us all," Mags sang out happily. "We have a good shot at winning this year if I do say so myself!" I glanced across the hallway to see Mitchell looking back at me. "Just to be clear," he whispered with a touch of determination in his voice, "YOU will be the one to make it out alive. I'll make sure of it." I laughed quietly. "Dream on Sanders," I said.

As I lay in my bed that night, I smiled at the ceiling. Annie, Finnick, and Mags had faith in me. I felt a strong surge of determination. I WAS going to win these Games. "I'll see you back in District Four guys," I whispered to my invisible family and Hope. As I fell into a light sleep, one thought went through my brain.

_I will be the victor of the 73__rd__ Hunger Games. _


	3. Welcome to the Capitol

**Disclaimer: Here's a shocker for you- I'm not Suzanne Collins therefore I don't own the Hunger Games. O_O**

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I woke up to the bright sunlight streaming through my window. I sat up and looked around in shock, not remembering where I was. Then I remembered the events of yesterday. I wondered if Hope had had a good time at that party last night. She probably didn't have a better time than me. She wasn't reassured at all that I would make it our alive. I however had Mitchell saying he would make sure I made it back out alive and my mentors had confidence that I could win. I was feeling pretty confident. I stood up and stretched. While I was sitting on the ground stretching out my back and legs, I heard a knock on my door. "Come in!" I called, standing up. Annie opened the door. Her flowing brown hair was brushed and she was wearing a pink dress that contrasted her swampy green eyes. "Are you ready?" she asked, stepping into the room. "I don't have anything to wear," I said. "I didn't exactly plan to be reaped." Annie smiled and walked over to a door and opened it. The open door revealed a bathroom and Annie gestured for me to go inside. "Why don't you shower? I'll be back soon with your clothes," she said. I smiled at Annie. "Thanks," I said gratefully.

I stepped into the bathroom and shut the door. I showered quickly, using a flowery scented shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. I stepped out of the shower and dried my hair. I brushed my hair out and wrapped the towel around myself. Annie was just shutting my door, a bag of clothes on her arm. Annie smiled, "You smell nice." I laughed. "I try." Annie laughed and set the bag down on my bed. She pulled out a black dress, hot pink heels, and a smaller bag that jingled. "Put these on," Annie said. I grabbed the dress and smaller bag and walked back into the bathroom. I slipped the dress on over my head and opened the smaller bag. I groaned as I dumped out the contents. The jingling in the bag was obviously caused by the excessive amount of jewelry. Okay, there's slight correction, PINK jewelry. I put in an overly large pair of pink sparkly hoop earrings, a long silver necklace with a big pink heart shaped stone at the end. There was a set of pink sparkly bangle bracelets and a ring with the same pink heart shaped stone. I looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like a Capitol teenager, without the funky colored hair and skin.

I walked out, giving Annie my Finnick death glare. She was staring of into the distance. "Annie?" I asked, waving my hand in front of her face. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "Sorry!" She looked at me. "Perfect," she said quietly. "This will impress the Capitol." So THAT'S what we were trying to do! I had to make a good first impression on the Capitol. I guess it would help me get lots of sponsors right off the bat. "I'm not a huge fan of all the pink," I said. "But I guess it will work." Annie handed me the hot pink heels and I grimaced. She smiled as I slipped them on. "Look at yourself in the mirror," she said, pointing to a full length mirror by the door to the rest of the train. I stepped over, wiggling. I was really going to have get used to these heels. I stared in shock at myself in the door. "Is that me?" I gasped. The black dress went down to the middle of my thighs and was form-fitted from the waist up. The top of the dress was a scoop neck, but it didn't go down outrageously low. The sleeves were like the sleeves on a tank top, three fingers thick. The jewelry added color to my outfit and made me stand out. I smiled as my eyes caught sight of the seagull necklace. My wavy hair had dried and fell perfectly on my shoulders. I looked gorgeous and I hated it even more than I hated pink. It wasn't like me at all. Annie beamed at me. "Someone's going to get a lot of male sponsors," she sang with a wink at me. I giggled uncomfortably and blushed.

I suddenly felt the train slow down and Annie stood up. "It's time to go see the Capitol!" she said. I groaned. "I hate fancy rich people," I muttered. Annie laughed again. Now that I realized it, she had a really pretty laugh, like wind chimes. "By the way you're dressed; you'll stand out from simplicity." I gaped and Annie smiled, opening the door. I carefully walked out into the sitting room and saw Finnick and Mitchell talking. Mitchell's back was to me and I sighed. I knew he was going to turn around soon though. Finnick was wearing a red long sleeved shirt and a black tie with black dress pants. Finnick saw me and winked. I turned tomato soup red. I saw Mags come out, using a cane to support her weight. She was in a long pink dress, similar to Annie's, but Annie's only went down to her knees. She was wearing a pearl necklace and white flats. Her grey hair was left loose. "I feel like we're all trying to match," I groaned. "I personally like being unique." Mitchell turned around and looked at me. He was in a black short-sleeved polo shirt and black jeans. He had on a red tie and I saw that he was still wearing his bracelet. I looked down at his shoes and smirked when I saw they were red. Our eyes met and he winked. In response, I stuck my tongue out at him, but I could feel my cheeks turning a light shade of pink.

Justice came out in a dress that was covered in shells and shorter than mine. Her heels were coated in sand and she was wearing an extreme over-abundance of starfish shaped jewelry. Her teal hair was curled and piled on top of her head in a strange up-do. I shot a glance at Mitchell and he feigned a gag. I stifled laughter as Justice said, "I'm going to go announce our arrival! Line up!" She fluffed her hair and strutted out the automatic door. "Okay," Finnick said, taking charge. "Mags, you're first as always. Then will be Annie and I. Last will be the two of you." Finnick pointed to us. We got in line in the order demanding Finnick had requested. Annie turned around and said, "Here's a crowd pleaser." Mitchell and I looked at each other as Annie said, "Hold hands and wave. Don't let go of each other's hands until I tell you that you can." Mitchell took my hand and looped his fingers through mine. I rolled my eyes. "You look nice," he whispered in my ear. "Thanks," I whispered back.

We heard Justice announce, "Here is our mentor and victor of the 12th Hunger Games, Mags!" The crowd applauded as Mags walked through the door. I was positive she was giving that sweet grin and waving at everyone. "Now here are our final two mentors, winners of the 65th and 70th Hunger Games! Please welcome Finnick Odair and Annie Cresta!" Finnick and Annie walked out. I noticed that they weren't holding hands. Annie and I were going to have a serious talk later. The crowd was going absolutely wild. "Now," Justice yelled into her microphone. "Welcome our two stunning tributes Mitchell Sanders and Genevieve Odair!" I took a deep breath and Mitchell and I stepped out into the receiving crowd.

There were thousands of people there. They were all dressed in neon and rich colors with lots of sparkle. They had every color hair and skin and most had a tattoo. Some people looked like they had been mixed with animals since their skin was an animal print. Some people even had the features of a certain animal. One woman had leopard printed skin, fangs, and whiskers and she might have had a tail, but I couldn't tell from all the people swarming around. What shocked me even more than the people was the actual Capitol. Imagine the biggest city you've ever seen, but ten times bigger. And then make sure all the buildings are all white and have a lot of big windows. Also, make sure that most of the buildings are shaped weirdly. The roads need to be paved with metal and lined with not plants, but statues of President Snow and other government officials and street lights. I hated it just like I hated everything else Capitol related.

As we walked away and into a tall regularly shaped building, Annie tuned around. "You can let go of each other's hands now," she said. "Good job out there. They loved you." She was beaming. "A real crowd pleaser huh?" Mitchell said, lightly shoving me. I laughed and muttered,

"Welcome to the Capitol."

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**Okay so I was thinking, I'm going to need some other tributes right? So I came up with this fabulous idea of letting you make your own tribute for me to put in the Games! So if you just comment the items that I have below, than I might consider putting your tribute in my story! Actually, I will. For sure. Oh, and if you see that someone has already taken the boy/girl spot for the District you want to do a) do the other gender b) do a different District. Thanks!**

**Name (first and last please!):**

**Age:**

**District:**

**Weapon of choice:**

**Appearance:**

**Personality:**

**Did they volunteer or were they reaped?:**

**Thanks again!**


	4. The Tribute Parade

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own anything Hunger Games related. Just in case you were wondering.**

**Sorry for not updating! I've been really super busy! I'm going to be busy the rest of the week too, so don't expect anymore chapters this week. Sorry!**

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We were soon separated from our mentors and Justice led us up two whole flights of stairs. Justice and I were both in heels. The only difference was that Justice made it the whole way in her heels and I had to stop after the first flight. Mitchell rolled his eyes at me. "What?" I exclaimed while slipping my heels off. "You want to walk up stairs in heels?" Mitchell laughed and I smiled. Justice was silent for once and eventually we reached our destination. It was a large room that had two smaller rooms in the back. "This is where your two stylists will prep you for the parade," Justice explained. "Genevieve, you're in the room on the right. Mitchell, you're the left. Just undress in there, put on the robe, and wait for your stylist to come." Justice spun around on her heels and strutted out of the room. "Capitol people," Mitchell muttered. I laughed. "By the time our stylists are done, we'll probably have fish genetics infused in us!" Mitchell and I laughed, remembering the animal people. "We better head in there," I said, jerking my head towards the doors. "Yeah," Mitchell said. "See you later."

I headed into the room. It had a tub in the back left corner, a sink with tons of cabinets and the room was littered with mirrors of every shape and size. There was also a counter top with makeup tools neatly organized on it. Next to it was a hospital-like bed. I undressed and slipped into a soft, fluffy white robe. I was just sitting down on the hospital-like bed in the middle of the room when three odd looking people came into the small room. There were two females. One was short and plump with poufy fuchsia hair. The other was tall and skinny with neon green hair. The man was tall and a little more on the plump side, but not extremely fat. He had aqua blue hair. They looked and dressed like Capitol people; lots of make-up, colorful tattoos, and funky clothes. "Who are you?" I asked. "I'm Casper and these two ladies are Silvia and Cherri," the man said, gesturing to the women as he said their names. "We're your prep crew!" purple haired Cherri exclaimed. "My, aren't you going to look great as a-," Silvia clamped a hand over Cherri's talkative mouth. "She means that you're going to be perfect. My, look at how long your hair is!" I had a feeling that she wasn't telling me to look at my own hair; she was more of talking to the other two. My hair fell down to my waist. "There are so many possibilities!" Casper gasped. "Cinna and Hayden will have a great time working on you!" "Let's begin!" Cherri exclaimed again, clapping her hands together. They led me to a tub where I cleaned up and when I got out, I went through the whole prepping routine. Soon, I felt like a cleaner version of myself.

"Now Genevieve," Silvia said. Silvia was by far my favorite of the prep crew. She explained everything that was happening and gave tips on how when I returned to District Four (IF I made it back to District Four) I could keep myself feeling clean like this. Silvia continued, "Cinna and Hayden will be in for you as soon as we leave. Cinna's only Hayden's apprentice, but he's much more talented and will probably be doing more of the work. Hayden will be supervising and helping Cinna with minor things." Great, those words made me feel much more reassured. An apprentice was working on me. Not a professional stylist, an apprentice. I didn't care much for the Hunger Games or the people in the Capitol, but if I wanted to make it out alive, I needed these people to sponsor me. I kind of had to look good. All three hugged me and hustled out of the room. I looked at myself in the mirror and realized that I had been completely comfortable with these people, completely bare. No clothes, nothing. I was sort of mortified, but I realized that they didn't poke fun at me or make any comments about my body at all. What nice people.

The door opened again and two men stepped into the room. One was fit and dark skinned with short dark hair, gold eyeliner, and green eyes. The other was a shorter fatter man with pale white skin, spikey red hair, a matching red goatee, and triangular shaped glasses that made his golden eyes stand out. "Genevieve Odair," the red hair man muttered. "Finnick Odair's little cousin. I'm Hayden, and this young man is my apprentice, Cinna. He designed your costume for the parade." Hayden stuck out his hand and I gave it a firm handshake, surprising the man. I guess girls didn't normally give firm handshakes. Cinna gave me a high-five and said, "Good luck." "Thanks," I responded with a smile. "Well," Hayden said, rubbing his hands together. "Let's get started. Cinna, get the costume out of the closet."

An hour later, after I had been dressed, covered with make-up (not too much although I wondered what was up with the starfish and gems), and my hair had been done. I felt like a completely different person. Not somebody from the Capitol who wore fancy clothes and lots of make-up for fun, but not quite like myself; I was more of a simple person and all these clothes and make-up were not me. Thank God that I didn't see any pink. Silvia was right though, Cinna did do most of the work. Hayden just sat back and watched, throwing out suggestions here and there. When Cinna finally pulled away from me, he scooted my rolling chair over to the full length mirror, his hands over my eyes, but not touching my face. My legs weren't able to move, but because of the cover over them, I wasn't sure why. I felt the cover fly off my legs and Cinna moved his hands away. I looked in the mirror and gasped. I was a mermaid, literally a person from the sea. I was wearing a top that was covered with seaweed, and shells. Two larger shells were also on the top, incorporating the shell bra look. It glittered and only went down to the top of my rib cage. My tail was blue and it glittered like the top. As for my hair and make-up, my hair was simply curled and pinned back. My make-up was simple, except for my eyes. They looked like the beach; my eyelid was the blue of my tail and under my eye was a golden color with thick chunks of thin golden glitter. There was a starfish in the corner of each eye and surrounding it were green, blue, and white gems. There were random small white dots around my eyes.

"I look amazing!" I gasped. Cinna and Hayden wore proud and excited smiles. "Let's head down there. Danny will be waiting with Mitchell," Hayden said. I nodded, my smile spreading across my face. I was wheeled out of the room and soon joined by Mitchell and his stylist Danny, who seemed to be a Hayden with purple features instead of red. We went down the elevator and Mitchell and I looked at each other again, just like we were looking in a mirror at ourselves. It was strange that we were both comfortable doing it to each other and having the other do it back to us. Did a strange bond always form between two tributes like this? Mitchell looked exactly like me, without the curled hair, make-up, and top. Yes, Mitchell was shirtless. And yes, Mitchell did have abs. A very well defined six pack may I add. Instead of all that, Mitchell seemed to be dusted with sand and there was a large light yellow starfish on his left shoulder. "You look good," I commented. Mitchell smiled saying, "I was about to say the same about you."

The elevator door opened and we were exposed to a room of chariots, horses, and the worst part, the other tributes. They were all in their standard costumes, but this year we were the different ones. I had always admired District Two's golden gladiator-like costumes, but this year, they paled in comparison to our mermaid attire. Two strong men lifted me and then Mitchell on to our chariot. The bottom looked like water and there were two smooth gray rocks in the center of the "water". Cinna, Hayden, and Danny climbed up on top and knelt down next to us, making final adjustments. I'm not sure how we could look any better though. Danny had been carrying two large packages and now he opened them, revealing two tridents made of glass then filled with water, giving the illusion that the tridents were actually formed from water. He gave them to us. "Hold them so that they're on the outer edge of the chariot," he instructed. "The crowd can see them better then." The tridents weren't that heavy. "Now," Cinna said. "If you flick your tails, you'll spray a small flicker of salt water. Do it every once and a while, but not until you get out there." He noticed that Mitchell was looking at his tail curiously, like he wanted to try it. "Just lift your legs in sync and the tail will flick." The three men climbed down and they were then replaced by our mentors. "You guys look great!" Annie exclaimed. "I wish that we were mermaids instead of fishermen in those skimpy netted outfits," Finnick grumbled. Mags laughed, "The crowd loved YOU darling. Your partner however, was not quite easy on the eyes." I frowned remembering Alice, Finnick's chunky partner. She died by a Career tribute from District One. I remember telling my parents that "I would never trust the Careers if my life depended on it". Of course, I didn't quite picture myself having too at that time. But now, seeing the well-muscled guys and the skinny yet muscular girls, I could picture myself teaming up with them. It would be mostly for survival and protection purposes though; not because I trusted them.

Finnick, Annie, and Mags said a few more encouraging words before they hopped off the chariot. The horses lined up as soon as the music started playing and District One went out in their pink feathered costumes with randomly placed jewels. Then District Two in their traditional golden gladiator costumes. I gulped as District Three went out, with random wires and gears all over their costumes. Then our chariot jerked forwards and into the Capitol night. I was momentarily blinded as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, but as soon as they adjusted, I saw crowds of Capitol people, even more than there were at the train station earlier. I put on my most dazzling smile and began to wave. Mitchell grabbed my hand and muttered, "Thrust your trident in the air and flick in three, two, and one. Now." We thrust our tridents in the air in sync and flicked our tails. Water flew from the tips and wet the ground in front of us. The crowd went wild. We continued to smiled and wave. I caught a light pink rose in my free hand and tucked it behind my ear. Just before we were about to stop, Maverick and I threw our tridents in the air again and flicked our tails. The crowd had gone insane. "This is crazy," I muttered to Mitchell as we lowered our tridents. "It's amazing that they enjoy this stuff. It's sickening." Mitchell nodded, but kept his dazzling white smile fixed on his face. "I only watch this part of the games, the interview, and the ending interviews. It's sick that people can watch the fighting and cheer on their favorites to kill the other tribute," He said back. I nodded back. We kept smiles fixed on our faces throughout President Snow's annual speech, but as soon as we were riding back, they faded from our faces.

"That was great!" Finnick exclaimed. "Want a sugar cube?" I groaned as he stuck his hand out, two pure white sugary cubes in his tan palm. I accepted one nonetheless, but he always asked me that. Mitchell took the other with no hesitation and I rolled my eyes. "Let's let you two go sleep," Mags said. Annie was laughing, but I'm not exactly sure why. Her eyes were all glassy. Finnick put his arm around her a guided her back to the elevator. We were wheeled back to the elevator as well. It was tight like the ride down but it was much shorter. "Just leave your costumes on the floor," Finnick called to us as we were rolled down the hall. We were dropped off in two rooms across the hall from each other. "Goodnight Mitchell!" I called as I rolled into my room. "Sleep tight Gen!" he called back. I smiled as the door shut behind me.

I wiggled out of my costume, into the shower, and then into some night clothes laid out on my bed. I shut out my lights with a little remote on my bedside table and the light faded into a black blanket. My eyes shut as soon as they hit the pillow. With my eyes closed, I processed all the events of the past two days. After replaying the Tribute Parade, one thought ran through my head before I passed into a world of dreams.

_"I've just sealed my death."_


	5. Good Morning Tributes!

**Disclaimer: No, the Hunger Games belong to Suzanne Collins, not me.**

* * *

I woke up the next morning to sunlight streaming in my floor-to-ceiling windows. I sat up and stretched, then stood up and looked in the mirror. My dirty blonde hair was tangled and it looked like I walked through a tornado. I grabbed the brush I found last night in the bathroom drawer, and forced it through my mess of hair. When I was finally satisfied with how my hair looked, I set down the brush and put my hair in a messy bun, what I usually wore. I turned to go put the brush back in the bathroom when I saw an outfit hanging on the bathroom door with a note attached to it. I strode over to it and plucked off the note. It read;

_"Dear Genevieve,_

_Today training begins. This is what you will wear the rest of the week. It will be washed every night, so don't worry about getting it dirty. Anyways, when you get this, dress and come for breakfast. If you're not here by eight, then I'll have to come and wake you up. Finnick's informed me you're an early riser though. _

_Hope you slept well,_

_Annie"_

I checked the clock, and this clock actually had the numbers on it! I was so used to those old-fashioned clocks with the hands that this slightly confused me at first (last night) but I had gotten the hang of it. The first part had a seven and the next section had a zero and then a one, making it read 7:01. "Seven o'clock," I muttered. "You would think I could have slept in a little longer huh?" I grabbed the clothes off the hanger and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I dressed quickly and then examined myself in the mirror. It was basically all skin tight, so I was glad I was fit. It was a black sleeveless shirt with white markings down the sides from our armpits to our hips, where the shirt ended. Then it was a pair of matching skin tight pants with white running down the outer side. On my feet were black leather boots that went up just past my ankles. I looked aggressive, and I hoped that I would catch the Careers' eye.

I walked out and sat on the edge of my unmade bed and went into deep thought. What if I did catch the Careers' eye? Would they ask me to team up with them? If so, when would they? Would it be before the Games, at a training session maybe, or would it be as soon as we stepped off the platforms? If they did ask me, would I accept? If I accepted, I would have a better chance of surviving, but a better chance of getting killed by force. How could I possibly team up with the Careers and still survive? I glanced at my clock. It was seven thirty. "Better go eat," I muttered and stood up. I opened my door and walked down the hall. When I got to the table, Finnick was the only one there. He was quietly eating something he had informed me were waffles, a breakfast food. They had some strange brown sauce poured over them then. I pulled out the chair next to him and sat down.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing to the brown sauce. "It's syrup," he said. My finger accidently touched it and I quickly pulled my finger away. "It's sticky!" I exclaimed. I licked my finger and then exclaimed again, "Syrup's sweet!" Finnick laughed. "I forgot you're not used to Capitol food. Here, try some." He put a waffle on my plate and passed me the jar of syrup. I popped open the lid and drizzled some on the golden fluffy food. I cut off a small piece and ate it. "Yum," I said. "Why don't the Districts get this food?" Finnick looked me in the eyes, a serious expression on his face. "It costs too  
much money to give all twelve Districts food like this and still have it in the Capitol." "But the Capitol-," I protested. Finnick gave me a hard look, and I shut up quickly. We ate the rest of our breakfast, making small talk, until Annie and Mags came out and Mags exclaimed, "Where's Mitchell? He needs to be out here! We're leaving in twenty minutes!" I sighed and stood up. "I'll get him," I muttered. Finnick raised an eyebrow in my direction, but Mags said, "Give her a break Finn. She'll be fine. A pretty face like that'll wake any boy up." Finnick muttered something under his breath, but I didn't quite catch it as I had already started heading back down the hallway to Mitchell's room.

I twisted the doorknob quietly. "Locked," I muttered. I pulled a bobby pin out of my hair and silently picked the lock. I stuck the pin back into my hair and gave the knob another twist and pushed the door open. I shut the door slowly behind me and saw Mitchell wrapped in his blankets, still asleep. I smirked and crept over to his bed. "Mitchell," I sang out. Mitchell groaned and put his pillow over his head. That's when I realized that he slept shirtless. _"Great," _I thought. I snatched his pillow from him and whacked him over the head with it. Mitchell sat straight up, his covers falling off of him. I snatched the pillow from me and grabbed my arm, pulling my face right up close to his. He had a steely look in his blue eyes, which I matched with a look of humor and determination. He shook his head, his long messy brown hair going with it. "You are the most aggressive girl I know," I muttered to me. "I get that a lot," I replied. "Now let me go!" He smirked. "You won't get any Career to let you go that easily. Why should I?" I growled and Mitchell feigned fear. I brought my face closer to his and Mitchell's eyes widened. I gave a flirtatious smile, one that I had used many times to trick guys into getting close enough to me to do exactly what I was going to do now. My mouth parted and I bit down on Mitchell's nose. He yelped and I let go and pulled back. He gave me a glare and I laughed. "You seriously thought I was going to kiss you?" I asked, laughing. That put him on defense. "You sure looked like you were thinking about it." I rolled my eyes and said, "Please. Me kiss you? Yes, let me go brush my teeth. I'll be right back. Are you kidding me Mitchell?" Mitchell was standing up now. "I'm getting dressed now," he declared. "You might want to leave, before you DO consider kissing me." I choked and headed towards the door. I felt Mitchell's eyes on me and my cheeks heated up as I remembered that what I was wearing was skin tight. "Not that I would mind if you kissed me," I heard Mitchell mutter as I turned the door knob. I turned around and raised an eyebrow and Mitchell shrugged.

I headed back to the dining area, and the three mentors and I were soon joined by Mitchell and Justice. We both let out an audible groan when we saw her, but Justice pretended not to notice. "Hello, hello, tributes!" she exclaimed cheerily. "It's nice to see your pretty faces up and ready to go!" I rolled my eyes as she took a seat across from me. "I just love what you did with your hair Genevieve!" she said. "It's so fitting for today since you'll ne training and all!" Yes, today was the day where we started training to kill other kids. I felt sick to my stomach, like I was going to throw up the waffles and syrup I had eaten earlier. I couldn't kill these people! They had done nothing wrong! "Thanks," I muttered. "Why are you so down?" I heard Annie ask. I looked at her and I was instantly jealous. She always looked gorgeous, even if she was mad. Plus, she was kind and Finnick absolutely adored her. Hearing the concern in her voice made me feel even worse. "I don't think I could ever kill anyone," I groaned. Mitchell burst out laughing and we all turned to stare at him. "Please," he choked out. "You bit my nose just a few minutes ago, for fun! You could kill anyone with no hesitation!" He continued laughing and I felt all eyes return to me. "What?" I exclaimed. "He wouldn't let me go!" All eyes turned back to Mitchell, Finnick's eyes turned cold. Mitchell's laughter turned nervous and then he exclaimed, "She hit me over the head with a pillow!" This time I burst out laughing. "We sound like a bunch of little kids," I laughed. "Let's just drop it."

Twenty minutes later, I was standing in line between Mitchell and the boy from District Five. Then, one of the instructors, the head instructor, spoke.

"Welcome," she said. "Welcome Tributes of the 73rd Hunger Games."


	6. Let the Training Begin!

**Disclaimer: Hear me peasants! I hereby declare that I do NOT own the Hunger Games! Carry on!**

* * *

I listened carefully as Atala explained the different centers. "Don't ignore the survival stations," she insisted. "Most of you will die from disease, starvation, and eating poisonous things than by hand-to-hand combat. Now tributes, begin!" We all walked to stations. I noticed that the Career tributes were heading to stations like sword-fighting and hand-to-hand combat. Mitchell veered off to a javelin throwing station while I made a quick decision to go to archery. As I walked over to the station, I saw the girl from District 1 and another much younger girl from District 11. When they both reached for the same bow, the older girl smacked the younger girls hand away. I sound of the hit echoed throughout the center, but was ignored by all. The girl cackled and sneered, "Respect your elders 11!" The girl had tears in her big brown eyes as she reached for another bow. By this time, I was already at the station. I snatched a bow and a coupled of arrows. The Career girl was rapidly firing arrows, all but one hitting the human shaped target, and the ones that did hit were only enough to slow somebody down, not kill them. The younger girl pulled back an arrow and let it fly, only to hit the dummy in the leg. The Career cackled again and continued firing arrows.

I knelt down beside the girl, who now had tears running down her face. She nocked another arrow and I laid my hand on her arm. "Pull your arm back like this," I said, moving her arm into position. "Now angle your bow so that it's straight." The girl did as I told her and let the arrow fly. This time, it hit the dummy nearer to the stomach, a big improvement from the leg. She turned to me and said, "I'm Orchid, from District 11. You're Genevieve Odair aren't you?" I nodded. "How'd you know?" She laughed. "Everyone's been talking about District 4's mermaid costumes last night. Now they'll be talking about Genevieve Odair, the amazing archer!" I smiled and laughed. "Let me go finish what that girl started," I said, gesturing over to the Career, who was still rapidly firing arrows. Orchid's brown eye's widened. "That's Topaz. She's mean! She'll hurt you!" I patted Orchid's ginger head. "Don't worry. I'll be fine." I took a position on the right side of Topaz, who acknowledged me out of the corner of her eye. I pulled back four arrows, something Finn had told me skilled archers did in the arena. I carefully aimed and then fired. One went straight into where the dummy's heart would be and the other three pierced right in the middle of the three of Topaz's arrows that could actually kill somebody, close to the heart.

Silence filled the Training Center. I could tell that all eyes were on the two of us. Topaz slowly turned to me, her golden eyes narrowed. "What was that for?" she demanded harshly. "I fired at the wrong target. Whoops!" I exclaimed, pulling off what Hope said they called a dumb blonde back when there was no Panem, just the good old United States of America. Topaz growled at me and turned around, stalking away from the station. "Sorry," I called sarcastically back at her. I heard laughing on my left and I turned, to see Mitchell quietly laughing. Go figure. He'd love to make fun of anybody when he got a chance. I could imagine him turning this into one of his tall tales that he was famous for. _"And then Gen was all like, 'That's right. I piss off Career tributes that could easily slice my head off for fun!'"_ I mentally rolled my eyes and continued firing arrows.

The rest of the training session went well. I tried to hit every station and made it to all except one; tying knots, which I epically sucked at. I was going to make that my last station, but I realized Mitchell was over there, tying knots like a pro. Finnick would be so proud. If I gave Mitchell any way to make fun of me, he would use it. "I'll go there first thing tomorrow," I muttered. Instead of knot tying, I went to the camouflage station, where I saw Topaz and the boy from District one, whose name I had learned was Mylar. I started painting on my arm, just a basic leafy pattern that I had perfected from practice and the picture on the table. Mylar and Topaz were talking in hushed voices, and I couldn't help but overhear bits and pieces. "But she's-," I heard Topaz say. "Doesn't matter-," Mylar said, persistent. "She's got skill and-," Topaz growled and started talking, but I only caught, "maybe, but I hate-," Mylar muttered something back and Topaz through her now blue hands in the air. "You win!" she exclaimed. "But not today, that would be rash! Wait until a little while on!" Topaz looked exasperated, while Mylar looked determined, yet slightly happy. He turned to me, and I examined him up close for the first time. He had blonde hair and dark blue eyes, something that would be typical for a boy in District Four. Except for the fact that he was more on the pale side, he looked like one of the muscular guys that you normally saw on the beach, fishing. "Sorry," he said, slightly sheepishly. "Didn't mean to interrupt you- oh my God! Did you paint that?" He cut off mid-sentence and shoved Topaz with his shoulder. "Look at that! You're amazing!" My face must have been as confused as Topaz's was shocked because Mylar said," "Look at your arm Odair."

I glanced down at my arm. It was the simple leafy pattern I had been doing, but I had dotted it with a few pink and blue flowers. It almost looked like it had come off of one of the cakes from the bakery in town. "You did that?" Topaz gasped. I shrugged. "I must've," I replied. "I don't think anyone else could have snuck up and done it. I would've smacked them." The two laughed, although I was being dead serious. "See?" Mylar said, elbowing his partner. "I told you." Suddenly, it hit me, like a brick hitting me in the face. The Careers were thinking about asking me to join them. Fear flooded over me, though I didn't show it. What would I say?

"Care to sit with us at lunch?" Mylar asked me, his blue eyes pleading. I glanced over to the knot tying station where I saw Mitchell looking at me with a _"What do you think you're doing missy?" _expression. I looked back at the Careers. "Mind if I take a friend?" I asked. The pair exchanged a glance and finally Topaz said, "I don't see why not." A smile spread across my face and Atala called, "Tributes! Follow me to the dining area!" The three of us stood up and Mitchell came marching over to me. I grabbed his muscular arm quickly and gripped it tightly.

I turned my head towards Topaz and said,

"So, where are we sitting?"


	7. Dinner Demons

**Disclaimer: If the odds were in my favor, I would own the Hunger Games. But the odds are NEVER in my favor, so I don't.**

"And then she made us sit with the Careers!" Mitchell exclaimed to our mentors later that night. Finnick turned to me, his eyes cold. "What for?" he demanded. I shrugged. "I thought it would be interesting. Besides, what if we want to team up with them?" 'You might want to!" Mitchell exclaimed. "But I won't fall for them! I will NOT join those Careers. They'll kill you Genevieve!" He sounded genuinely concerned and upset, like the fact that I would do something as bad as teaming up with the Careers was highly offending and he cared enough to do something about it. "I say let her team up with them!" Mags exclaimed. "If Genevieve wants to play that game with the Careers, no matter how risky that game is, then she'll pay for it!" Annie's face was contorted into a mess of fear, sadness, and disappointment, expressions I never liked to see on anyone's face. In fact, right now, that expression was on everyone's faces but mine a Justice Prince. "I think teaming up with the Careers is a wonderful idea!" she exclaimed. "She'll learn so much from them and plus, she's got a better chance of making it out alive!"

We all sat in silence for a couple of moments before I stood up, fed up with their ideas on what I should and shouldn't do. "I'm going to bed," I said sourly. "See you in the morning for training." I breezed past the five of them and stalked into my room, shutting the door behind me, but catching it before it slammed shut. I flopped on my bed, staring up at the ceiling. "What have I done?" I muttered to myself. "I'm now friends with four of the most dangerous people that are going to be in that arena, but is that a good thing or a bad thing?" I shut my eyes, remembering our conversation with the Careers. Mylar and Topaz had made it pretty obvious that I was definitely being asked to join them. Styx and Alexis caught onto their plan quickly and I think we all got along quite well. Then, there was Mitchell. I groaned, remembering one thing he had said.

"Do you plan on having any allies?" Mylar had asked. Mitchell shrugged and had replied, "Maybe. I don't really know for sure yet." _"He should have stopped there,"_ I thought to myself. _"But no, of course he didn't." _"I was thinking the boy from District 10, Angus, looks pretty strong, maybe Kiva from District 6, she looks pretty smart, somebody who could really strategize. Other than that, I really don't know." He had continued. "You didn't think much of anyone else?" Alexis asked sweetly. "No," Mitchell had responded. "Everyone else was okay. Those two were really the only ones that stuck out to me today." Nervousness had been growing inside of me. _"If I want to be with the Careers, I'd better do something before they change their mind because of what Mitchell just said," _I had thought. I quickly snorted, "You must not have been paying very close attention." The Careers laughed and Mitchell managed to forcefully mutter, "I guess not." I remember letting out a small sigh of relief, glad that I had kind of saved the day. Well, I saved my hind and hurt Mitchell that's what I did.

"You're stupid Genevieve Odair! Stupid!" I muttered into my pillow. "What are you going to do once it's just you and the Careers left in the arena? You can't fight all of them! You're as good as dead!" I heard my door quietly close and I shot straight up into sitting position, causing yellow spots to dance before my eyes. When they cleared, I saw Finnick standing in front of me. I groaned and flopped back again. "What do you want Finn?' I muttered. "Sit up," he said. "What do you want?" I repeated coldly. Finnick grabbed my arm and pulled me up. "You're stubborn," he said. "But listen, we need to talk." "Really?" I muttered, rolling my eyes. Finnick ignored me. "It's a dangerous game you're playing with the Careers," he began. "I'm aware of that," I insisted. "I'm willing to take that risk." Finnick sighed. "I know, but here's the thing. You and I both know there's nobody in that group you can actually trust." I paused a moment before saying, "What are you getting at?" "What I mean is, you should stick with people you can trust, not people who are strong. You don't want any backstabbers Gen," he finished. "I know," I said softly. "But I want to do this. I don't know why yet, and although it's not the smartest idea, I feel like it'll all go my way. You've got to trust me."

Finnick met my eyes. "You realize you'll probably lose the trust of Orchid don't you? I saw the way you helped her. She wants to be your ally. You're probably her best chance of survival." That hit me hard. This thirteen year old girl would probably die, and it would be all because of me. Finnick saw my hurt and sad expression and said even more softly, "You'll lose Mitchell too." I didn't say anything. Tears were popping up in my eyes. Out of all the tributes, those were the two that I cared about the most, that I would do anything for, that I wanted to make out alive, even if it meant giving up my life. Finn stood up. "Make wise decisions Gen," he advised. "Once you make them, there's no turning back." And with that, Finnick Odair, victor of the 65th Hunger Games, and my favorite cousin, walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

That night, I couldn't sleep. Too many thoughts, too many scenarios, too many things that had happened these past through days were running through my mind, haunting me. I finally stood up and walked out of the room, heading over to the floor to ceiling windows at the end of the hallway. I sat down, gazing out at the Capitol. Lights sparkled and the fountain in front of our building glistened in the moon and street lights. Even though it seemed to be at least one in the morning, people were still walking around, talking and laughing. I was so busy absorbing the scene that I didn't even notice that a figure sat across from me, our feet barely touching.

"It's pretty isn't it?" I heard Mitchell's voice whisper to me. "Yeah," I whispered back. I looked over at him to see him staring right back at me. "I'm sorry," I whispered after a moment. "You were right. I shouldn't trust the Careers but I've got this feeling in my gut that's whispering, _'Trust them,'_." Mitchell looked at me. "Finnick told me about your conversation. What's your plan?" I looked away from him, gazing back out at the Capitol night life. "I've got to kill them somehow," I muttered. "I've got to prove to the Capitol that I'm not just some regular District Four girl. I'm not part of that stereotype. I'm me and I play by my own rules. I won't let the Capitol control me and I won't let them shape my life, which right now, is headed for death." Mitchell looked at me, and then a smile spread across his face. "Do you want help with the killing phase of that plan?" I shook my head and said with a smile, "No, but I'll need an alliance afterwards." We locked eyes and Mitchell said, "I'll be sure to get Orchid." "Make sure to get Angus and Kiva too. You're right, they're assets. We need them if we plan on getting out of here alive," I replied. "We?" Mitchell said confusion clear on his features. I smirked. "I don't play by the rules, remember? I'm me and I am rebellious."

I stuck out my hand. "So is it a deal?" I asked. Suddenly, Mitchell hugged me tightly. "I thought you'd never ask," he responded.

And at that moment I knew that everything was going to play out just right.


	8. Private Session with the Gamemakers

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own the Hunger Games.**

The next two days were filled with training, training and more training. I had become closer with the Careers and I had also talked Orchid, Angus, and Kiva, although Mitchell was already closer to them. It wasn't hard to believe. After spending six days with him, I was about as close with him as I was with Hope. Almost as close; three days remember? Topaz, Alexis, and I were forming a strategy. When I informed them that I was a night owl, Alexis had laughed and said, "You can have the first watch every night then!" We had all laughed, and that's when a plan started formulating in my mind; a plan to beat the Careers all at once. I just needed one thing for sure, but I could use others if I couldn't get my hands on it.

On the third day, I finally hit the knot tying station. Good part, the instructor was nice and pretty funny. She wasn't surprised at all that a girl from District Four didn't know basic knots. "In fact Genevieve," she explained. "Most girls from District Four shrug aside knot tying, but it's good that you're acknowledging your weakness." I wondered if Hope knew how to tie knots. If she didn't, Mitchell and I would have to teach her when we got home. The bad part, Mitchell was there too. He was kind of impressed that I didn't know some basic knots, but he didn't hold it over my head. With his and the instructors' help, I was tying pretty good knots by the end of my time at that station. I had also improved at hand-to-hand combat. That's where I was my weakest. If I got into a fight with that muscular boy from District 11, I would be dead. Or if I got caught in the middle of my plan by one of the Careers waking up, then I would either have to fight them or run really fast. I could now take down the biggest instructor without breaking a sweat. Finnick and Mitchell were very impressed. I could also use every weapon in the Training Center good enough that if I got my hands on one, I'd at least know how to use it pretty well.

I woke up on my fifth day in the Capitol refreshed and ready for my private session with the Gamemakers. I dressed in my normal training outfit but today, I fishtailed my dirty blonde hair down my back. I walked out of my room and sat down at the table, grabbing a banana. As I peeled my banana, Captain Mitchell the bed headed walked out into the room. "Why are we up so early again?" he mumbled, flopping down in the chair across from me. I swallowed my bite of banana and said, "Private sessions Mitch." He ran his hand through his messy dark brown hair and muttered, "Oh man. What am I going to do?" "You could use your trident," I heard Annie's voice suggest. We turned our heads to see the three of our mentors standing at the head of the table. "Or you could impress them with your knot tying skills," Mags suggested. Finnick put his hands on the table and leaned in close to us. "Let me give you some tips," he said. "First, do the thing that you're the best at. Gen, I would suggest throwing some knives, camouflage, or shooting multiple arrows. Mitchell, you should do some knot tying, maybe make a net, or do some swordplay. Do it with flair, Capitol flair. Good scores will get you sponsors, lots of sponsors." I digested this information and a smile spread across my face. "I've got it!" Mitchell and I exclaimed at the same time. We looked at each other. "It'd better be good Odair," he laughed. "Yours had better be superb Sanders," I laughed back.

Finnick looked back and forth between us and then said, "Well happy people, let's head down there. It's 9:40 and this thing starts at 10. You'll be seventh Genevieve and Mitchell you'll be eighth." The five of us and Justice, who had been standing there eagerly clapping her hands, rode down in the elevator to the basement Training Center. "Well," Justice said. "I've got to go inform the Gamemakers that District Four is here! See you later!" She waggled her fingers and strutted back over to the elevator, joining the escorts from Districts 1,5, and 9. Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I spun around to see Alexis and Styx. "Hey!" I exclaimed, giving Alexis a hug. Styx stuck out hi hand, and I shook it. Styx was formal in that way. It was kind of cute. He had black hair and green eyes, making him look mysterious, yet charming at the same time. "So, do you know what you're doing yet?" Alexis asked, her brown eyes glittering. Her brown hair was in a messy bun today. I nodded. "It's a surprise," I told her. "I haven't even told Finnick and he's my cousin!" Styx let out a snort. "I don't tell my family anything. They just make a big deal out of it." I smiled. "I'm sure they're just concerned about you." Styx shrugged. "Maybe they are, maybe they're not." Alexis gestured for us to lean closer and we did. "I'm throwing swords like a spear," she whispered. "Isn't that unique?" I laughed. "It sure is Lexi, it sure is." She smiled and Styx muttered, "I'm showing my skill with a mace." The mace was a new skill Styx had picked up during the three days. "That's a good fit for you," Alexis said. "Good choice!" Then, Topaz and Mylar came and Alexis, Topaz, and I quietly explained our strategy to the other three.

Soon, it was 10:00. "Good luck!" Alexis and I called to the blonde as she went into the room. Minutes ticked by. Mylar went in and came out soon later, than Alexis went and came out beaming. Styx came and went with no expression on his face, concerning me. Then the two from District 3, Gizmo and Widget, went and I gulped. "Genevieve Odair," I heard a robotic man's voice say. I stood up and confidently walked over to the door. "Go get them tiger!" Mitchell yelled. I turned my head and flashed him a smile. Finnick was expressionless, Annie was laughing, and Mags had her thumbs up. I took a deep breath and opened to door. I grabbed a bow and a single arrow and said simply, "Genevieve Odair, District Four." I walked over to the camouflage station and began painting quick yet skillful bark pattern on myself. Ten minutes later, I was finished. I pressed myself up against a tree. "Where'd she go?" a Gamemaker exclaimed. I allowed them a couple seconds of confusion before I shot a single arrow at the human-shaped target, hitting in the heart area. I stepped away from the tree, allowing the Gamemakers to examine me. They scribbled a few things down on some paper and then I said, "Thank you," put my bow down, and walked out.

Mitchell looked at me like I was crazy. "You were a tree?" he asked. "That's good!" I rolled my eyes. "I'll talk to you later." Mags and Annie escorted me up to the room. "So what DID you do?" Mags asked, staring at me on the ride up. "I'll tell you later, once I've gotten my score." Mags laughed as the door opened to our suite. "Go shower Genevieve. Once you're done in there, Mitchell with probably be back. Then we can relax for a little bit." I laughed and went into my bathroom to shower. All the paint washed right off of me and I just put a dab of shampoo and conditioner in my hair. I got out and changed into a pair of black jeans and a white cotton shirt with blue flowers. I slipped on a pair of blue flats at I simply left my hair be. I walked out to see Mitchell and Finnick come out of the elevator. He clearly didn't do anything camouflage related since he had no paint on himself. "Go shower," Finnick advised him. "Then you can come back out. Mitchell didn't even look at me as he brushed past to get to his room. "Is he okay?" I asked. Finnick shook his head. "He says he doesn't think the Capitol was too impressed," he said. "Oh," I replied softly. "Do you think you impressed them?" Annie asked me. It was a no brainer. "Yes," I immediately said. "I'm positive."

Soon came the time for the scores. I sat between Finnick and Mitchell, glad I wasn't Annie who was sitting next to Justice. Justice just kept babbling on about how good she thought we did. Finally the Capitol anthem played and she shut up, eyes glued to the screen. "District One," the announcer said. "Topaz." There was a slight pause before he said, "Eight." Justice and I were the only ones clapping, but only Justice was glared at. The others knew I was firm on my Career decision. "Mylar," the announcer spoke and all was quite again. "Eleven." Justice and I clapped again and the announcer continued. "District Two. Alexis. Nine." I clapped again and Justice gave a polite clap, seemingly calming down from her clapping phase. "Styx. Ten," the announcer announced. I gave a loud cheer. "He did it!" I exclaimed. All eyes were on me. "What?" I exclaimed. "He was very unsure!" The announcer announced District Three and soon he said, "District Four." Mitchell and I took a deep breath and I grasped Mitchell's hand for reassurance. "Genevieve Odair," the man said and after a slight pause which seemed like forever finished by saying, "Eleven." We all went wild. I hugged everyone and I put a finger to my lips and gave a loud, "Shush!" as the announcer said, "Mitchell Sanders." Mitchell gripped my hand again. "Ten." Mitchell shot up and he got hugs from everyone as well.

The rest of our night was great. We spent it celebrating our high scores. Before we headed off to sleep, Finnick said, "Tomorrow, Annie, Mags, and I are going to train each of you, separately. We want to see each of your skills individually." Mitchell and I exchanged a glance and I shrugged. "I don't see why not." With that, the two of us headed off to our respective rooms and as soon as my head hit the pillow, I sank into a deep sleep.

I actually had a good chance of winning these Games.

The rest of the scores are as follows: (Females and then males)

District 3

Widget: 8

Gizmo: 8

District 5

Vida: 6

Watt: 7

District 6

Kiva: 8

Cooper: 9

District 7

Amber: 7

Jack: 8

District 8

Calico: 5

Flax: 6

District 9

Ceres: 6

Rye: 7

District 10:

Merona: 7

Angus: 10

District 11

Orchid: 9

Spud: 8

District 12

Nelly: 5

Hilt: 6


	9. Private Training

**Disclaimer: Guess what? The Hunger Games is NOT mine! Shocker! XD**

I woke later than usual the next morning, but that was no surprise. We had been up late celebrating mine and Mitchell's high scores. I was about to change into regular clothes, but then I realized that Finnick, Annie, and Mags were giving me private training today, so I changed back into my training outfit. I put my hair in its' usual messy bun and breezed out of my room. I simply grabbed an apple and ate while standing, waiting for the other four to come out. When they did, I realized that we were all dressed exactly the same. I groaned and Mitchell smirked. "Shut up," I muttered. "What?" he said, teasingly. "It's not every day you get to see District Four's hottest man in a skin tight training suit! You should be happy!" I snorted and replied, "It is every day that you forget Finnick Odair is my cousin." Mitchell's face flushed. "Oh yeah," I muttered. I laughed softly.

"Well," Finnick said, shaking his head. "Let's head on down there. I've reserved the first spot available today. We'll still have Gamemakers watching us, so make sure to do nothing less than fabulous of whatever you did yesterday." I smacked my forehead. "That's right! We never did tell you what we did yesterday!" Mags nodded. "We were dropping hints all last night. You didn't seem to take any of them," she explained. Both of our cheeks flushed. "Well," I started. "I camouflaged myself as a tree and then shot two arrows from by the tree and hit the dummy in where the heart would be. In the Games, it would shield me from the target so I could easily kill them." Finnick nodded his head in approval. "What about you Mitchell?" he asked. "I made a net," he muttered. "I tied a knife in with the knot in about every other one and one at each of the four corners. Then I tossed it at a dummy." He shrugged. "It was nothing special." "That's very creative," Mags praised. "The Gamemakers appreciate a good creative performance." Mitchell smiled and we rode the elevator down to the Training Center.

I was shocked when we stepped into the Training Center. The trainers were here, but it was weird being in here with no other tributes. It was empty and it seemed colder than usual. "I'll take Genevieve with Annie first," Mags said. "You can take Mitchell. We'll switch in about half an hour." Finnick nodded and I followed Mags and Annie to the knot tying station. We worked on knot tying a couple of minutes before we moved onto some weapon stations. First we went to the swordplay area. I took on the trainer there and when I had finally beaten him, Mags threw out some suggestions. "Don't be so daring!" she exclaimed. "He could have sliced your head off there if you hadn't dived out of the way!" We moved onto archery, with no suggestions from either mentor, just praise. After that we headed towards throwing knives. "The most important thing here is perfection," Mags explained. "You almost never get more than two knives and you can't exactly run past your target to get the knife that missed. Your first throw needs to kill or seriously injure. Make sure to hit your target somewhere that will either kill them or make them fall to the ground." I nodded my head and started throwing knives. Mags nodded her head. "Accuracy is good." I looked towards Annie. Her eyes were glassy and she was staring at the target muttering, "No. Don't kill him." _"Poor Annie," _I thought. _"She really has gone mad." _

Ten minutes later, Mitchell and I switched mentors and I was with my favorite cousin, Finnick the ladies' man. "With me," he explained, "we'll be working more with the power of your attacks, while incorporating the accuracy." I nodded. "Let's do it." We headed over to sword fighting, where a new, buffer trainer was. I gripped my sword and took my position. The man charged at me so I ducked and swung my blunt sword at him, whacking him in the side. He stumbled away from me and I used a disarming maneuver to knock his sword out of his hand. He dove at me and I side-stepped towards his fallen sword and quickly snatched it off of the ground. I quickly charged at the guy and whacked him with the blades, hard. I only stopped when he held up his hands in surrender. He stood up, gasping for breath. "'I've never met a female tribute as aggressive as you," he choked out. "Not even the group you call the Careers." I nodded in appreciation and handed him the swords for him to put back. I turned and met Finnick's eyes. His eyebrows were raised in disbelief. "Let's move on to archery," he suggested, so away we went. Archery for me was a breeze and Finnick knew it. I shot at the target, hitting it in the bull's eye. "Is that all?" Finnick asked. I shrugged, "Maybe one more shot to put them out of their misery." I pulled back another arrow and hit the target again. "There," I said, turning towards Finn. "He's dead now." Finnick stared into my eyes and said, "Last station; throwing knives." He simply handed me two knives with black leather handles and sliver blades. "Make your throws count," he said. "I heard Mags telling you earlier, but with knives, it's easier to mess up. Accuracy means throwing lighter for some people. If you're chasing somebody or you've got a target you want to kill-," I looked away from his eyes as he said that, but he continued. "Then you need to have both. One scrape of the skin isn't going to kill a tribute."

I gripped the handles of the knives as I turned to face the dummy. Fear flooded me and suddenly, going into the arena seemed realer than ever. That fear was replaced by anger; anger at the Careers. They treated the Hunger Games just like the people in the Capitol. Like killing people was just a game. I quickly aimed and then hurled the knife in my right hand at the dummy. I quickly saw it hit right by the bulls eye as I aimed again and then threw the knife in my left hand. Finnick handed me two more knives. "Again," he said quietly. So I threw more knives. Soon, the dummy had ten knives by the heart area, all from me. Finnick and I walked over to pull them out and I gasped at what I had done. The knives had been thrown with so much power that the blades had gone through all the way to the back of the dummy. Finnick and I locked eyes.

"Next time I see you throw a knife like that," he whispered in my ear, "it'd better be at one of the Careers."


	10. Interviews

**Disclaimer: I still don't own the Hunger Games.**

Cinna and Hayden dressed me in a short strapless dress that was patterned to look like the ocean. Coral reefs, colorful fish, and shells dotted the entire dress. I wore black heels that had a scaly pattern on them. My nails were teal and had the same scale pattern. Jewelry wise, I wore my seagull necklace, fishing hook earrings, and a blue knotted bracelet. My hair was again curled, but now it was pulled into a side ponytail with small thin strands hanging out. Makeup was very minimal, but I had some on. "Thank you two," I said to Hayden and Cinna. "You're very welcome," Cinna said and Hayden just said, "Make a good impression tonight." I nodded and laughed. "I've got in the bag!" I then walked out and joined Mitchell, the mentors, and Justice on the elevator. Again, Mitchell and I examined each other like we were looking in a mirror. Mitchell was in a simple black suit, but his tie had the same pattern as my dress. He had on teal shoes that matched my nails and I saw his knotted bracelet on his wrist. "You look good as always," Mitchell said. I forced the color away from my cheeks as I said, "Thanks, but why do you always take the words right out of my mouth Mitchell Sanders?" We laughed and the elevator doors opened.

We were the last group to arrive. "I told you we should have taken them to their stylists earlier!" Justice exclaimed, embarrassed. "Relax Justice," Finnick said soothingly. "We still made it here on time." He turned to Mitchell and me and said, "Let's go get you two in line." We followed Finnick, Annie, and Mags to right behind Widget and Gizmo and in front of Vida and Watt. I stood in front of Mitchell and as soon as I stepped in line, Gizmo turned around. "You're making a stupid decision," he said, gesturing to the Careers, who were waving to me. I gave a smile and waved back. Then, I faced Gizmo. "Trust me Gizmo, I've got it. You don't have to worry." Gizmo and I had worked together at a rewiring station. I was having a bit of trouble and Gizmo volunteered to help me since the trainer was busy. "You could always join Widget and me," he pleaded. "I don't want to see you die by the hand of one of those awful Careers." Upon hearing her name, Widget turned around. When our eyes met, her eyes grew cold and narrowed. "We don't want her Gizmo," she growled. "She's made a decision to be with the Careers. It's her death and she's choosing to die by the Careers." I looked at Widget and nodded. "She's right Giz. There's nothing you can do about it now." Gizmo got sort of teary eyed. I couldn't blame him. He was thirteen and nobody had volunteered for him. He was smart, but he didn't have any strength. Widget was sixteen and just a smart as Gizmo, but she was stronger. They were a good team. I bent down and gave Gizmo and hug. When I pulled away, he turned around and faced Widget's back.

Mitchell tapped my shoulder as Topaz went on, the first interview. "What?" I asked without turning my head. "Do you think our parents are watching?" "Yes Mitchell," I sighed. There was a pause before Mitchell said, "If I hadn't been reaped and you had, I would have bet on you Gen." There was a cheering from the crowd as Topaz walked off stage and Mylar walked on. She gave me a thumbs up and went to join her mentors to wait for Mylar. "Can we talk about this later?" I asked. "I really need to focus." There was no reply from Mitchell, so I took that as a yes. Mylar came off from the stage moments later and I watched as the line grew shorter and shorter and soon, I heard the applause for Gizmo.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" I heard Caesar Flickerman announce. "It is to my great pleasure to announce to you Genevieve Odair, the beauty of the sea!" The crowd went wild as I put on a dazzling smile and walked out on stage. Caesar took my hand and kissed it and we sat down. The cheering died down as Caesar said, "Genevieve my dear, what do you think of your nickname, the beauty of the sea?" I thought for a moment before I said, "I like it. It's very fitting." The crowd and Caesar laughed. "Good. I'm glad. Now, rumors have been going around." My eyes grew wide as I gasped, "Really? What are they about?" "One is that you've formed an alliance with the Careers. Is it true?" I laughed, "Yes, you'll be seeing me with the Careers." The crowd applauded and I forced my smile to get brighter. "What do you think of your score from the Gamemakers? An eleven is very impressive, especially for a girl," Caesar said. "Please," I scoffed. "A girl can do anything a guy can, but getting an eleven for me is like a big step. It means I have a better chance of winning and getting out alive, so I can go be with my family." The crowd grew quiet. "Do you miss your family?" I forced tears to come flooding to my eyes, although I knew the normally wouldn't. "I do Caesar," I said softly. "That's my biggest reason to make it out of the arena alive, so I can be with them again." Caesar and the crowd gave a big sigh. Caesar leaned forwards and asked me, "What do you think of the Capitol so far? Is it nice?" I thought for a second before answering, "I love it!" The crowd exploded. "Everything is so pretty and unique and I just love looking out at the city at night. All the lights are just so beautiful!" I crowd applauded and Caesar waited for silence before saying, "There's one bigger rumor going around." "What is this one?" I asked, looking confused. "It's that you and the other boy from your District, Mitchell Sanders, are in a relationship." The crowd gasped and I felt my heart stop. "What are your thoughts on that?" Caesar asked. "Well," I began. "First of all, we're not. I couldn't imagine being in a relationship during these Games, especially not it one or both of us are going to die." Caesar nodded. "But," I said wistfully. "I think I might like that if we weren't in the Games." Caesar smiled, "I think you two would be adorable together. Who here agrees?" The whole crowd cheered and Caesar and I stood up. He grabbed my hand and thrust it in the air yelling, "I give you Genevieve Odair, the beauty of the sea!" The crowd went wild and I smiled and waved, then walked off stage.

As I passed Mitchell, I couldn't look him in the eyes. I simply walked over to the mentors and stood next to Annie, the only one who wasn't giving me strange looks. When Mitchell came off stage, Finnick congratulated the both of us and we rode the elevator up to the fourth floor, where our suite was.

I couldn't sleep that night, so I walked out to the window at the end of the hallway. Soon, I once again felt another person stand by my side. I glanced out of the corner of my eye to see Mitchell standing next to me. I took a deep breath before I said, "I meant everything I said tonight." Mitchell didn't respond and I mentally shrugged. _"Oh well," _I thought. _"We're both probably going to die anyways." _Mitchell turned to face me and I turned towards him. We locked eyes and Mitchell said, "I wouldn't mind it either." It sounded completely off topic, but I knew exactly what he was talking about. "I've been trying to tell you that all week. I was excited about settling down in District Four and if both hadn't been reaped, I was going to ask you to-," his voice caught, but he shook it off and finished with a quiet, "go out with me." I stared at him a moment before I hugged him tight. He hugged me back, just as tight. When we pulled away, we were both crying silently. "I wish these Games didn't exist," I murmured. "Me too," he whispered back. We stared into each other's eyes before I said, "Good night Mitchell. Happy Hunger Games."

As I walked down the hall, I heard Mitchell whisper back,

"And the odds are ever in YOUR favor."


	11. Let the Games Begin!

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything Hunger Games related.**

I woke to Finnick shaking my shoulders violently. "I'm up! I'm up!" I said loudly. Finnick yanked me out of bed saying, "The Games! Hayden and Cinna are waiting for you!" He pushed a shirt and some jeans, and some boots into my arms and rushed out of the room, possibly to go wake up Mitchell. I dressed in the clothes Finnick shoved into my arms; black leather pants, a navy blue long sleeved shirt, and black leather combat boots. I quickly fishtailed my hair down my back and ran out to the elevator, where I saw Finnick, Annie, Mags, Justice, and, surprisingly, Mitchell waiting. "Let's go!" Justice exclaimed. "We've got to get you to your stylists!" We all piled into the elevator, a very tight squeeze. When the doors finally opened, we were standing outside, a large plane in front of us.

"This is where you leave us!" Justice exclaimed. "Good luck tributes!" She stepped back as Annie and Mags rushed forwards to hug us goodbye. "Good luck," the both whispered to Mitchell and I. "Thanks," we responded, squeezing our female mentors tight. Then, Finnick came. He pulled Mitchell into a hug first, but soon wrapped me in a tight warm hug. Tears sprung to my eyes. "If I don't make it out, tell my family I love them," I told Finnick. "You'll make it out," Finnick whispered in my ear. "I have faith in you. You're strong Genevieve, strong and smart. Don't forget about Mitchell. He'll help you." He pulled away and shoved me forward. "Go!" he yelled. He was crying and I remember something he told me when I was just ten years old. _"You're my favorite cousin Gen," _he had said. _"You're my favorite cousin too Finn," _I had responded. Now, I was leaving him to go fight to the death as he had done years earlier. I stopped running and spun around. "I love you Finnick Odair!" I yelled. Tears were streaming down both of our faces. Mitchell tugged my arm and managed to pull me towards the plane, me resisting all the way.

When we sat down on the plane, I scanned it for the first time. Among us were the tributes from District's 5, 7, and 10; none of my Career friends. A Peacekeeper appeared in front of me and spoke, "Give me your arm," in a very monotone voice. I stuck my arm out. "It's a tracker," the girl from District 5, Vida, said. I nodded in her direction. "Thanks," I heard myself say. Mitchell's hand gripped mine as we flew through the air. When we landed, he gave my hand a squeeze and we both stood up and exited the plane.

I followed (more like "was escorted by") two Peacekeepers to a small room where Cinna and Hayden were standing, waiting for me. I hugged them both quickly and pulled away just as fast. Hayden handed me a black leather jacket and I slipped it on. Cinna went around my backside and hooked something around my neck; my seagull necklace, my token. "Thank you," I said, turning to face Cinna. He simply nodded. Suddenly, a male computerized voice came over a speaker. "You have twenty seconds to step into the tube." I turned to the back corner of the room to see a clear glass tube with light shining down the top of it. The voice started counting down. "Twenty, nineteen, eighteen, seventeen-," I made my way over to the tube. "Sixteen, fifteen, fourteen, thirteen," I stepped inside of the tube and looked out longingly at my stylists, who had easy, normal, Capitol lives. "Twelve, eleven, ten, nine-," I fingered my necklace and thought about Finnick. "Eight, seven, six, five," _"If Finnick made it out," _I thought. _"Then I can make it out too." _"Four, three, two-," the voice said. Cold hard determination filled me. I was going to make it out alive, for Finnick. And Mitchell was going to make it out too. "One." The voice finished. My hands pressed against the glass container in surprise as the floor beneath me rose.

Suddenly, I was burst into a dark run down town. The only light given off was from the flickering street lights and the glow of the golden Cornucopia. I blinked a couple of times, my green eyes adjusting to the dim light. I was eager to step off the platform, but I watched as the girl from District 12, Nelly, stepped off the platform to be blasted into the sky. A canon boomed and all the tributes exchanged a glance as we all knew that the first tribute had died. The same robotic man's voice started the count down. "Ten, nine, eight-," I looked at my Career allies, who gave me a thumbs up and readied themselves to run. "Seven, six, five-," I looked at Orchid, Angus, and Kiva, who nodded at me discreetly. I nodded back. "Four, three, two-," I looked at Mitchell, wishing that one of us didn't have to die. He smiled sadly at me and I smiled back. I got in position to run. "One," the man said and a horn blew.

I sprinted towards the Cornucopia, grabbing a backpack and a silver sword along the way. I watched as Mitchell, Kiva, Angus, and Orchid grabbed a backpack each and ran away from the Cornucopia. The boy from District 12, Hilt, and also gotten a sword and he was grabbing a backpack nearby. "Kill him!" Alexis shouted at me. I put my backpack over my shoulders and ran after the boy, quickly overtaking him. I quickly and easily stabbed him through the stomach and pulled my sword out. It was bloody and disgusting. I looked around and saw bodies littering the ground. I also saw Flax, the boy from District 8, run right past me, a backpack in hand. I threw my sword like a javelin at him and it went straight threw his neck. I ran and grabbed the sword, which was now even bloodier. I glanced around and it seemed that it was only the Careers and Ieft in the area. I jogged over to them careful not to trip up onto the cracked sidewalk. _"That would be a dumb way to die," _I thought. _"Tripping and having your own sword go through your gut." _

When I joined the Careers, they were all talking and laughing. "I killed three of them!" Mylar was bragging. "I killed three too," Alexis retorted, laughing. "I think the rest of us got two," Styx said. "That's twelve people in total. Plus that idiot from 12 that stepped off of the platform too early." "Way to go genius," I snorted sarcastically. We all laughed, although I was faking mine. The thought that they could laugh about killing people was sick. "Thirteen canons went off!" Topaz exclaimed. "We were the only people that killed anyone!" More high fives from everyone went around in a circle. "The tributes this year are really wimps," Mylar muttered under his breath. "We should have no problem killing everyone off." "Over half of the tributes are already dead," I said. "This should be a relatively fast Games then," Styx said.

After a short celebration, we went through our packs. I had some rope, dried meat and fruit, a metal canteen (empty to my great despair), a ruby necklace (what that was for I had no idea, but I slipped it on anyways), three knives, and some duct tape. The last two items just sealed my plan. I knew I was going to be one happy tribute tonight. "Gen!" I heard Alexis call. "What?" I replied. "Want my bow and arrows for your sword?" I shrugged. "Sure!" I called back. I walked over to her and handed her the now clean sword and she gave me the silver bow and quiver of arrows.

"So where do you think we are?" Mylar asked. "As far as I can figure," Topaz said. "We're in an old abandoned city, like a modern ghost town." I looked around at the old crumbling skyscrapers and rusty street signs. "Maybe this is what America looked like after the war but before Panem formed," I suggested. Styx shrugged. "Maybe," he said. "We may never know."

Later that night, I heard the Capitol anthem play. I watched as each of the twelve tributes who had died today appeared in the sky. Finally, when the anthem ended, Mylar walked up to me. "We're going to go inside the Cornucopia to get some sleep. You're the first watch Genevieve," he said. I nodded and gripped one knife in each fist. "Go get some sleep Mylar," I replied. "I'll keep an eye out for trouble." The four headed into the Cornucopia and in less than five minutes, I heard snores coming out of the Cornucopia. I gulped as I dug through my backpack for the duct tape. What I was about to do was very dangerous and could get me killed. I watched for a little while longer, until I was sure they were all asleep, and then headed over the mouth of the Cornucopia. I gulped again and wiped the sweat from my forehead. _"Am I sure I want to do this?" _I asked myself. I gazed over the sleeping killers and hate welled inside of me again, like when I had decided to do this in the first place.

_"Yes," _I told myself. _"I'm ready."_

Deaths that first night were:

Nelly and Hilt from District 12.

Flax and Calico from District 8.

Amber and Jack from District 7.

Gizmo from District 3.

Ceres and Rye from District 9.

Merona from District 10.

Spud from District 11.

Vida and Watt from District 5.


	12. The Careers

**Disclaimer: No, I don't own the Hunger Games, only my own characters.**

The first thing I did was move all the weapons far away from the Careers. I carefully set Mylar's swords, Styx's javelin, Alexis' sword, and Topaz's knives down on the ground in the very back of the Cornucopia. Well, I kept one of Topaz's knives. I would need it for my plan. Then, I quietly prepared four long strips of duct tape quietly stepped over to the tributes. I knelt over Topaz, placing the duct tape strip over her mouth. I carefully pressed it down and I silently stood up and moved onto Alexis. Finally, I only had Mylar left. I quietly sucked in my breath and placed the strip over his mouth. I quickly moved away and stood up, examining my handiwork. Four tributes with duct tape over their mouths? Check.

I pulled out my four knives. I held three in my left hand and one in my right, my throwing arm. _"I'll start with the biggest threat," _I thought. I readied my arm and Mags' words echoed in my head. _"Make your first throw count," _her voice repeated over and over in my head. Finally, I threw my knife and it sunk right into Mylar's gut. I let out a silent sigh of relief and then grabbed another knife and threw it. I looked at Styx's now lifeless body. The knife had hit him straight in the heart. The next biggest threat would be Alexis. Without hesitating, I threw the knife. Her breathing stopped and I looked over at my last target, Topaz and gasped in shock.

Topaz's golden eyes were wide open and I knew she had seen everything I had done. She ripped the tape off of her mouth and stood up, instinctively reaching for her knives. When she realized they were gone, she turned to me, her glare visible. "Why?" she demanded. "We trusted you!" She stood up and positioned herself directly across from me. "In District Four, we were taught that if we were surrounded by barracudas and a single great white shark, that we should take out the shark first, and then the barracudas," I said. "What does that have to do with anything?" Topaz snapped. We were circling each other, but I had the weapon. A plan started formulating in my mind, but I continued speaking. "The other tributes are the barracudas and you, the Careers, are the great white. I'm doing what I was taught in my District. I've taken the biggest threat out." Topaz growled at me, "So I'm not a threat?" She charged at me yelling, "TELL ME AGAIN I'M NOT A THREAT!" I threw my knife at her and it sunk into her heart, a direct hit. Topaz collapsed onto the ground, her eyes glazed over. "You're not a threat," I hissed. Four canons went off and I smiled, proud of myself.

The thrill of killing the Careers energized me. I stayed up the entire rest of the night (although you couldn't tell in this place) cleaning my knives, collecting all the arrows around the Cornucopia, and making things out of duct tape. You heard me right, duct tape. After a good hour, I had fashioned a belt that had four loops in it, one for each knife. I gathered food and other supplies from around the camp and shoved them into my bag, preparing for phase two of my plan. Suddenly, I heard a bird call, the call of a cardinal. I looked up and to my left, a smile spreading across my face.

Orchid, Angus, Vida, and Mitchell were all standing in a line, waiting for me. I slung my backpack and quiver over my shoulder, grabbed my bow, and double checked to make sure my knives were still secure in my spots. I stood up, smiling like a maniac, and ran towards the four, my real allies. Mitchell had the biggest grin on his face. I smiled back and gave little Orchid a hug. "Did you kill them or just scare them off?" Angus said with a wink. I laughed quietly. "They're as dead as a doornail Angus. They won't be back anytime soon." He slapped me on the back. "Way to go Odair," Vida said. "You've got a better chance of winning now." I looked at her and raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Mitchell was still smiling and catching sight of him made my heart swell. I threw myself into his arms and he hugged me tightly. When we pulled away, my ruby necklace caught onto his shirt. He unstuck it and looked at it, frowning. "Why do you have an amulet?" he asked. "What do you mean?" I said. "it came in my backpack, so I put it on."

Mitchell gripped my shoulders and his blue eyes bore into my green ones. "Genevieve, this is what people use to keep evil spirits away."

Then, we heard a hissing noise, a sound that reminded me of something you would hear in a horror movie. The five of use slowly turned around. When our eyes caught sight of what made the noise, I thought I was going to have a heart attack. "DEMONS!" Orchid screamed, and she was right. Standing before us were four wispy figures.

Wispy figures of dead Career tributes who wanted revenge.


End file.
